The Commission approves an aid scheme for
inland waterway transport in Belgium

The European Commission today gave its approval for
an aid scheme to boost transportation by inland waterways in Belgium. The scheme
will benefit companies operating regular services to and from the port of
Brussels. It will apply from 2007 to 2009 and cost €450 000.

The scheme will provide grants to companies operating one or more services
transporting containers by waterway from a terminus in Brussels. The aid will be
granted only to operators of regular transport lines, be they existing ones (to
be operated with greater frequency) or new lines.

The Commission considers that the scheme is compatible with the provisions of
the Treaty.[1]

European transport policy supports the use of inland waterways and other
environmentally-friendly forms of transport that represent competitive
alternatives to transport by road. The European Commission seeks to promote and
strengthen the competitiveness of inland waterway transport, in particular by
integrating it more into multi-modal supply chains through the NAIADES
programme.[2]